The present disclosure relates to a device for use with a beverage making apparatus and more particularly to a device which is used to prevent or control the outflow of liquid from a beverage substance holder such as a funnel assembly.
A variety of beverage making devices are available to provide some form of control for liquid flowing into and out of a beverage substance holder. By way of review, a beverage substance holder retains a filter material or structure and a charge of beverage making substance, for example, ground coffee or tea material. Water is dispensed into the beverage substance holder so as to infuse the beverage making substance and cause a beverage to be extracted.
Devices have been designed which control the flow of water into the beverage substance holder. Also, devices have been created which prevent the flow of beverage out of the substance holder such as when the beverage container is removed from beneath the holder.
For example, drip-stopping devices used in the home beverage industry have been designed which allow the beverage container, or “coffee pot”, to be removed from a brewing apparatus. The drip-stopping device prevents coffee from continuing to flow from the funnel assembly after the coffee pot is removed. In this situation, a mechanical interface with the coffee pot results in a covering of or plugging of an outlet aperture in the brewing funnel assembly assembly.
One of the problems that arises with such drip-stopping devices is that after the funnel assembly is removed from the brewer, the drip-stopping mechanism no longer functions. For example, if the drip-stopping mechanism requires the coffee pot to activate mechanical structures on the funnel assembly assembly. Once the funnel assembly is removed from the brewing system and is no longer contacting the coffee pot, the drip-stopping feature cannot function.
Further, the drip-stopping devices currently in use are generally not controllable. In this regard, the funnel assembly and drip-stopping mechanism described above will not be controllable other than by use of the coffee pot activating the mechanical structures. No known devices controllably operate the opening and closing of the outlet aperture in the funnel assembly.
It would be desirable to provide some degree of control of the flow, through the outlet aperture in the funnel assembly, so as to provide additional control relating to the characteristics of the brewed beverage. For example, such an apparatus could be used to control the steep time associated with a particular beverage brewing substance such as tea or coffee. When used with coffee, different flavor profiles or flavor characteristics could be obtained. Similarly, with tea, different flavor profiles and characteristics could be obtained through controllably steeping the tea through intermittent opening and closing of the outlet aperture.
The intermittent control or pulse brewing by the device could be used to pulse brew a beverage from the funnel assembly, thereby limiting the amount of brewed beverage that is pulsed from the funnel assembly during a given brewing cycle. This may result in extended contact between the ground coffee or tea particles and the brewing water, thereby altering the characteristics extracted from the substance.